27 May 2025

Australia’s largest logistics company is attempting to sack workers who engaged in protected industrial action, in a sneaky retaliatory move to de-unionise its workforce.

Qube announced a snap restructure of its mobile crane business after workers at the Port of Brisbane and Vestas’ Wambo Wind Farm took protected action.

The company has declared it will make sweeping redundancies, while the CFMEU delegate has been stood down on trumped-up charges.

Qube, part of the notoriously anti-worker Patrick Corporation, is crying poor despite holding a lucrative contract with Vestas’ Wambo Wind Farm project.

Quotes attributable to CFMEU QLD/NT Civil Construction Coordinator Dylan Howard:

“Qube’s tactics are straight out of the Patrick playbook: dodge its workers’ legitimate demands by dissolving the business.

“This restructure is a sham – and we know it’s a sham because Qube brought in labour hire workers to replace the direct employees after they took protected action.

“If Qube’s mobile crane business restructure was genuine, it would have commenced long before the company entered bargaining with its workforce.

“The restructure is a shameless accounting trick to allow Qube to terminate the employment of union members who exercised their legal right to strike.

“We’ve heard reports of bullying and discrimination by Qube management, who are using typical boss tactics to try to divide the workers.

“The crane operators and riggers don’t take protected action lightly, but they were left with no other option after months of negotiations with the company broke down.

“Qube workers are united in their demands. They are simply asking for market rates and entitlements consistent with comparable mobile crane agreements.”

Contact: Joe Gorman 0429 314 932

qnt.cfmeu.org
(07) 3231 4600
16 Campbell Street Bowen Hills QLD 4006